Lydia nodded as Whispers acknowledged who her grandfather was and looked rather pleased. There was a few times where she had her parents had entered the bakery themselves. “Yes, thank you very much Misses Shuriken.” She grinned feeling happier now; much less worried about the gifts she had given to Junior, nodding towards Kurocage’s apology.

The girl looked curious once she was told that she should be heading back home but needed to wait for Whispers to return. “Give me something?” she wondered what it was as she watched Whispers leave and then return. Glancing briefly towards Junior just as Whispers had returned with the bundle.

Lydia gently taken the sweet bread wrapped in white cloth from Whispered and bowed her head gently in appreciation, “Hmm. Still warm.” She smiled gently before looking up towards Whispers, “Thank you so much and you are very welcome, I have no problem at all helping Junior out.” “In fact, why don’t I meet you here tomorrow morning?” she glanced towards Junior, knowing he would say yes. “We could set off together, before meeting the others.”

Whispers nodded her head with a smile as Lydia accepted the freshly-baked sweet bread. "You're welcome, I hope you enjoy it."

Junior blinked a little as Lydia finally addressed him, seeing how quiet he had been during the whole exchange between her and his mother. A smile spread on his face as she suggested that they set off together in the morning, glancing up at his mother and father briefly out of habit to see if they seemed to be okay with this before returning his attention back to Lydia. "S-Sure! I'd really like that," he replied cheerfully.

"Sounds like a wonderful idea!" Whispers chimed in as she clapped her hands together in approval. "Well, you really should be going now. Tomorrow's a big day, for both you and Junior. You'll need your sleep, especially you, Junior," she said as she ruffled her son's light grey hair playfully before returning her attention back to Lydia. "Goodnight, and hope to see you in the morning!"

"Goodbye, Lydia!" Junior said, waving at his new friend as he and his parents began to head back inside the house.

"Ranger girl, eh?" Renaldo said as he rubbed his chin. "I don't believe I've ever met a ranger girl our age before..." He shrugged and didn't let himself worry too much about the fact. "I'm sure she's a nice girl." He added before Irving asked him if he was ready. "Well, I guess I'm as ready as I'll ever be, not much more I can do to prepare." He shrugged, and stretched his arms, feeling stiff from being still for so long.

Renaldo spotted a red-headed beauty walk in. Curses, red hair, my one weakness! He thought to himself. "Now, if you'll excuse me Irving..." He said with a grin as he made his way over to her. He sat down beside her with a glass of water, as the food he had eaten earlier wasn't sitting well with him. Something about her sparked an interest in him, and not just because of the red hair. "So, I haven't seen you around here before. I'm going to take a shot in the dark and say that I've just been unlucky?" He said with a smirk on his face.

Last edited by Zath on Sat Jan 14, 2012 8:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Aldrnari swallowed the bite that she had just put in her mouth and looked up, her grey eyes taking in the important details of the boy sitting next to her. Short hair meant that he enjoyed a certain amount of neatness, or had no patience for extensive personal hygine, and tan skin with a lean frame meant he was outdoors quite often. His inquisitive eyes told her that he was confident and outgoing, unafraid to talk to strangers, which was also easily reflected in the fact that he had sat down with her immediately. His clothes hinted at sensibility, colors well-suited to blending into the forest and a hunting knife strapped to his belt led the girl to believe he was a tracker or hunter, though the scimitar, the intricate scabbards and the spiked bracers led her to believe he was more than just that.

Satisfied with her analysis, Aldrnari considered his words for a moment, and sighed inwardly at the smirk he was wearing. He wasn't quite as bad as that attempted ladies' man of a booze-hound that she had to chase off a few months ago, but the fact that he was trying to flirt with her in the middle of her dinner was rather annoying. And unfortunately, there was no way she could simply give him the slip right away, seeing as she was right in the middle of her meal, in a building a hundered or so yards from the forest's edge. Threatening him most likely would be unsuccessful as well, there was no doubt that he was quite capable of handling himself in a fight with the weapons that he carried.

Remaining silent, she picked up her coffee mug and took a sip, smiling into the warm brew, thinking for a moment about how she would miss her father, who poured so much sugar into his mug that he might as well be drinking syrup instead of coffee. She liked her coffee sweet too, but Hroth was just ridiculous about it. Finally, she set her mug down and turned to speak to the boy. "I only come into town when I need to. I don't need to very often, which is why you haven't seen me." She spoke flatly, keeping her annoyances to herself.

Zath: Behold, Karo: The only woman in existence who can make Fenix shut the fuck up.Redsnow: That, and, frankly, if Karo doesn't like you that much, your character is probably going to die soon after his acceptance anyway.Keiran: Bad RPs don't get picked, unmemberable RPs get ignored.Zelosse: I don't usually laugh at blatant attitude, but when I do. It usually involves Karo.

Lydia smiled and nodded towards the Shuriken family. “Alright I will be back in the morning, goodnight everyone!” With that Lydia stepped down from the front step of the entrance to the Shuriken house and made her way back down the streets. She managed not to think about her worries for the rest of the night, she had been becoming tired as the night went by, and she felt a rumble in her stomach, reminding her she still must have something to eat.

With a sigh, Lydia opened the front entrance door to her home. But before she could even get in the door she was approached and given a handful of questions by her parents.

“How was your night?”

“Did you make any friends?”

“How was the food?”

Lydia narrowed her eyes slightly at the questions she had been given before shaking her head, “Not too good actually, and I didn’t have a chance to properly eat anything. But I did make one friend.”

Her parent’s looked a little worried that their daughter’s night hadn’t gone to plan; they had hoped everything would be great for her especially for the next day of what was to come. Her father looked down towards the bundled sweetbread Lydia was holding in her arms, grinning. “So you made friends with the baker’s son?”

Lydia nodded, “Yes, he seemed he could have used a friend tonight, even tomorrow and the trip ahead.” Lydia made her way to the large staircase of the mansion leading up to the upper floors, stepping on the first steps. “I need to go repack. Do you have anything left over from dinner?”

“We do, we can bring up some to you if you’d like.”

“Yes, please.” Lydia smiled before making the way up to her room.

Once inside her room, Lydia placed the bundled sweetbread onto her desk. Going over to her already packed bag she emptied the bag onto her bed staring at the dresses and very unpractical clothes. “What was I thinking.” She muttered to herself before going over and opened up the drawers of the large wooden chest of drawers, smiling to herself she knew she could find something more practical.

Taking out a variety of clothes, suitable for long trips on foot she went back to the bag on her bed to begin repacking, just when her mother came in with a small plate of warm chicken, vegetables and a slice of bread.

Her mother could tell there had been something bothering her daughter’s mind, “Is there something that bothers you?” she asked.

Lydia sat down at her desk, shaking her head as she picked at the vegetables and chicken with a fork. “Something about all this is very off. Why would the town elders bring the time of us leaving ahead of schedule?”

“I knew you would ask about this. But there isn’t anything we should worry about, after all traditions can change over the years.”

“I hope so.”

“Honey, I know you are worried about tomorrow, but I know you to be a very patient and strong minded young woman. I know you can do this.” She smiled.

“Thank you mother.” Lydia smiled up to her mother.

“Now eat up and rest. You have a long day tomorrow.”

“I love you.” Lydia closed her eyes as her mother gently placed a kiss upon her forehead.

“I love you too. Goodnight.”

With that Lydia’s mother left the room.

It didn’t take Lydia long to replenish herself with something to eat before finishing her packing and got ready for bed. The young apprentice had been tired, it had been a very long day and with many unexpected thoughts and occurrences. She managed not to worry about anything for the rest of the night, by the time she had laid down to sleep. She was out like a light.

As the party finally died down and the last trays of food were cleared away at the inn, a comforting silence fell across the village of Amber Falls. Even the town leaders had retreated to their homes for a restless night’s sleep. There would be no more arguing tonight.

-Great Amber Falls-

Even as the town rested, the wheels of a mighty machine were turning. There was no time to stop, no time to rest, and no time to lose. Grendel appeared at his camp at the height of the great falls no sooner than he had left Ranger Hroth’s office. Grendel, his attendants, and his troop’s advanced scouts had been camped up river for days. “Ignorant fools!” The man grunted in rage as he removed his cloak and handed it over to one of his attendants. They had been on him in an instant. “They either know absolutely nothing or someone is hiding what they know very well.” Grendel Glowered at another of his assistants. “Disrobe me. I must again bathe in the falls. My preparations will be delayed no more.” A few minutes and a ways upstream later, Grendel waded into the river and closed his eyes. “Resistance or not, we must retrieve the Branch, no matter the cost.”

Chapter 1: Where is Sunfish Pond?

-Amber Falls: Main Road-

The night came and went as uneventfully as ever a night could. At two hours after dawn the children were once again gathered. It was time to finally make their last goodbyes to friends and family and set off. Many had come to do just that, in fact much of the town had come to see them off. As ever Elder Her was there as well, looking no more rested than the night before. A pair of dark circles had begun forming under his eyes, yet he wore them well. “I hope you all have everything you need for your journey young ones. The journey to Crenshaw should take about three days. The trek isn’t arduous but you don’t want to starve along the way.” The elder chuckled. None had ever starved taking the journey, and it had been decades since anyone had been lost. The only threat of danger for anyone would be in town. “Your first stop should be at Sunfish Pond. There is a cabin there for travelers like yourselves to rest for the night. On your second night you’ll come to a clearing at the edge of the forest, another good place to make camp for the night. From there Crenshaw should only be a hop skip and a jump away.” The elder smiled and closed his eyes for a few moments. He remembered his own journey fondly.

“Now, if there aren’t any questions, you can all be on your way. Good luck everybody!” As the elder waved the children goodbye the crowed behind him broke into loud fanfare. There was shouting and crying and the playing of happy music. The day had finally come, and they couldn’t have been prouder.

Orcus looked through the crowd, trying to find any empty spots or weird zones his master would be in. There weren't any. Probably away on business somewhere, there'd been some unrest at the graveyard recently, he was probably helping the clergyman. Orcus straightened his back a little, trying to even out his spine, sleeping against that tree had come with a nasty price. He sighed quietly under his breath, shuffling his stance to get comfortable. He looked around for the little red-headed girl, Ariannah, to see how she was, just checking up after what he'd heard last night but his eyes swept across Gregory instead. Ah, the sensible fellow. he thought as he walked over to him. Gregory would be good company on this trip. Plus he seemed like he'd know everyone else on a more personal level so a good source of information if people kicked up a fuss again.

=-"I'm sophisticated, charming, suave, and debonair, Professor. But I have never claimed to be civilized."

Lydia had woken up that morning rested, but not knowing what lies beyond the boundaries of Amber Falls had literally worried her into reluctance to move from the comforts of her bedroom and bed itself. Lydia groaned lightly as morning sunlight beamed through the window of her bedroom and turned over burying her face into her pillows and blankets.

Although Lydia had been reluctant to leave, she always knew this day would come. The day she’d finally step out of her comfort zone to become a woman of society and adulthood. After finally finishing getting all her belongings together, and for the first time in a very long while and after a suggestion of her friends and parents, she got dressed in the most practical type of clothing for journeys such as this, sturdy boots, pants and shirt and the cloak and it felt much better to let her hair down and out of the held up pigtails she normally kept it in.

The young clock maker hung the pack back from her shoulders and made her way downstairs meeting up with her parents and grandfather. After telling them she had promised to meet up with the baker’s son, they all walked out of the mansion and down the road to meet up with the baker’s family.

All the while the girl had been trying to keep a stoic expression on her face and not to ball out crying, pursing her thin lips together they had finally met up with the baker’s family and Junior. Together both of the family's would gather with all the other families, who’d say their last goodbyes to their children. It had been very hard for Lydia to say and hug them goodbye, but she kept telling herself not to cry. Even though her parent’s did, she had felt almost embarrassed by seeing them to so.

There wasn’t much at all she could question after listening to Elder Herr’s speech. Lydia inhaled in a deep breath and glanced around to all the other apprentices and then to her parents, glancing towards Junior not far from her.

Gregory stood ready in the crowd, his luggage neatly arranged in a manner that would be the most efficient for travel. He quietly ate a loaf of bread from the party as Elder Her gave his speech to the apprentices. He was not much interested in the speech until the matter of directions came about. "Sunfish Pond, huh?" He thought quietly. Suddenly, as though it were a strange wheel turning in his head, Gregory began to realize something as the Elder spoke. The thought he began to develop was brief, but it made him pause from his eating and last upon it. It was in this moment of thought that Orcus approached the shopkeep, arousing him from his leave of absence.

"Oh, hello Orcus" Gregory tore off a half of his loaf and offered it to the Spook, "You ready to get this show on the road?" His questions were brief and formal, talking at length could wait until they were actually on the road.

Junior's parents smothered him ins hugs and kisses just before they were forced to depart. His father specifically was having a difficult time letting go of his young son, having to be coaxed away by his mother before he could join Lydia and the other apprentices as they gathered around to listen to Elder Herr give them his farewell speech and instructions on where they would have to go on their three-day-journey. Junior listened intently, hugging his stuffed cat plushie in his arms tightly as his stomach filled with butterflies, nervous yet excited for their journey ahead.

He looked over at Lydia and nodded his head at the older girl. "Y-Yeah, I guess so..." he replied meekly before staring down at his feet. "It's...really exciting, isn't it? M-My heart's pounding and my stomach feels funny..." he said with a short, nervous laugh.

Aldrnari had risen with the sun, starting her day like always. Gathering her things, she dressed quickly, ran a brush through her tangled curls, and slung her travel bag over her head to hang on her right shoulder. She didn't bother looking over the contents, it was always packed with everything she would need to survive on her own for an indefinite period of time. She stopped though, to add the brush she had been using just moments before to the bag, since she would be staying in Crenshaw for some time. She strode over the the coat peg in the wall of her room, and retrieved her quiver, her bow, and her mottled cloak, the symbol of the rangers. In one fluid movement, she unbuckled the strap of her quiver and hung it over her left shoulder, feeding the leather strap through the strings of her travel bag before buckling it again. Aldrnari rolled her shoulders a little to settle her quiver in the right place along her back, with her bag settling nicely on top of it. Hroth always called her way of layering things complicated, but she felt that doing it that way meant more comfort and less resettling when out on patrol. She quickly strung her bow and shrugged it onto her right shoulder, letting it hand there where a simple slide and flick would send it into her hand, ready to be loaded with an arrow. On top of all that, she layered her cloak, fastening the oak-leaf shaped clasp and shaking it about to hang evenly on both sides. She retrieved her armguard and firing glove off of her end table, slipping them both on and buckling the straps down tight on each. With just one piece of preparation left, she removed each of her knives from the back of her belt, checking the edge and balance on each before returning them to their sheathes.

Opening the door to her room, she paused for a moment before stepping into the hallway, listening for any sound throughout the house. It was silent, without so much as a creak from the raised floorboards. No one had returned to the lodge while she slept, and not a single ranger was there to see her off. It bothered her a little, that her father wasn't there on her big day, but the ranger in her fully understood and accepted why he wasn't. Now wasn't the time to behave like a petulant little girl. Looking back into her room, she sighed, wondering when the next time she would come home might be. Taking the walking stick she had been given from next to her door, she stepped into the hallway and walked to the kitchen for a simple breakfast. Cutting a few slices of bread, she smothered them with honey and made her way out the front door, leaving without bothering to lock it. There was no point in breaking into a ranger's lodge, as there was nothing of any real value kept there.

She moved silently down the heavily wooded path that would lead her to the main road out of town, which is where everyone was supposed to gather for the sendoff. She didn't much like the idea of having to travel on the open road, it was too open for her tastes. Of course, she wasn't looking forward to travelling with so many of the kids from town either. They had no idea what being away from home would be like, and were completely unaware of the dangers that lay outside of the sleepy little village. Not to mention their group would be prime fodder for bandits when they were too far away from either Amber Falls or Crenshaw for help. If she had her way they would take the most unknown, out of the way paths that she could find, but she highly doubted that any of the other children would follow her, even after her explanation of logic and general criminal behavior. She sighed thinking about it all, and kept walking, chewing slowly on her small meal.

When she arrived there were still only a few kids and their parents present, so she hung back in the tree line with her hood up, almost invisible in the shadows. She watched quietly as more and more people arrived, seeing only a few who had come alone like she had. She stood motionless for well over an hour, simply observing everything, until Elder Her finished his speech, which she frowned deeply at. Everything he mentioned about where to stay sounded like a terribly idea to her. Needless to say, she would be finding her own locations to spend each night, ones that would be far safer than the ones he mentioned, but close enough to assist the other children should trouble indeed arise. But there was no point dwelling on things, as it was time to go. Lowering her hood, she materialized out from the darkness and walked to the middle of the road, waiting for the other children to come and join her.

Zath: Behold, Karo: The only woman in existence who can make Fenix shut the fuck up.Redsnow: That, and, frankly, if Karo doesn't like you that much, your character is probably going to die soon after his acceptance anyway.Keiran: Bad RPs don't get picked, unmemberable RPs get ignored.Zelosse: I don't usually laugh at blatant attitude, but when I do. It usually involves Karo.

After beating a hasty retreat out of the gathering, William had made it back to his home with little trouble. He knew that he was coming back earlier than he should but he also knew that there was no use in trying to sneak in unnoticed. William's father was as sharp-eyed as they come, though not nearly as observant as the local rangers. Shoulders sloped, William slinked into his home. Of course, his father already was well aware of William's presence. For a brief moment, they looked at each other before William's father gave a rough grunt and went off to tend to his own business around the home. Unsure where he brothers might be, William quickly ducked into their room to finish packing his travel materials; it would do him no good to be unprepared come the morning. As William left, his father looked over his shoulder at his retreating son. He grumbled in a deep voice, "What ahm I gunna do wit ya boy?" Shaking his head, he returned to his previous task.

The next morning, William was up before the dawn to check his supplies one last time. His bag was packed with all the general supplies that he would need including his lantern for patrols, folded neatly away and his looking glass hung from a leather cord at his side. Luckily for William, his uniform was designed to be traveled in and spending long times out patrolling the roads. He spent a moment to briefly wash himself outside of his home, before returning indoors to don his uniform. The links in his mail jingled as he moved about and fastened his travel cloak about his shoulders. He made his way out of his shared room and out into the common room of his home where his father was already waiting for him with William's spear. Everything about his father was large, he built wide and strong and he always seemed to have a large scowl crowned by massive facial hair. Holding William's spear looked like a twig in his massive hands. "Yer late boy. Let's go." He tossed the spear towards William and exited the house, starting down the path to where everyone was to meet. William managed to catch the spear, fumbling with it for a bit before he ran off to catch up to his father.

They walked in silence, aside from the light jingling from William's uniform. They made it to the meeting place in a short while. After listening to the Elder speak, it was time for the children to finally leave. William's father looked at him and grunted in a mix of approval and permission to leave. Without saying anything more, the massive man turned about and began to walk back to their home, there was much work to do after all. William stood there for a moment unsure if he should say something to his father before they parted but his courage faltered and all he could manage was a quick nod and ran off towards the road to wait for the other children. Unknown to William, the precise moment he turned away, his father turned about and for a brief moment, his scowl changed into something more somber and he muttered under his breath, "Good luck boy."

William jogged out towards the road where he saw another of the children already waiting. He figured that might as well be the place where they all congregate before they move as a group he ran towards the other child. As he neared the other, he tripped on a loose stone and tumbled to the ground, falling in the most graceless way possible. As the dust settled, he saw that he had actually landed right next to the other child. Still on the ground, he looked up and blew some of his thick hair out of his eyes to see a face full of freckles and red hair. "Oh...uh hi Aldrnari, nice day isn't it?" He retrieved his spear, which had clattered to the ground next to him and used it to help himself up, dusting off his uniform the best he could.

Vincent had already bid the members of the guard farewell. A drink or two was had between the lot of them who could not attend the party. Upon the question of why he hadn’t opted to go Vincent shrugged and said ‘Not my scene,’ with a smirk and another swig of swill. The young man left the guards who were off duty and bid the rest of them farewell individually with a smile and a handshake. When he came to Amber Falls, Vincent hated the world and everything around him, but with a little of guidance he was now just cynical. While others looked at hope Vincent continued to look at things logically but with a grim determination.

As the night grew darker he separated himself from the village staring out into the forest. He was still wearing his usual outfit; his old guard uniform was tucked and handed back to the captain, even though he was probably the only person who would be able to wear it. If Vincent returned to this place he would not be a guard, but a Master Wizard, and if he continued on a master of hand to hand combat. He slid his robe off of his arms and began to practice as the moon hung in the sky. He could hear the party in the distance but scoffed to himself, if he was going on a journey with these people why were they not getting rest or practicing their art? In truth Vincent was nervous and avoided the party intentionally in the event that he grew out of control and charred the food.

Vincent whirled a small ball of fire through his fingers as he heard the party begin to die down. By this time the tips of the grass around him had been charred, leaving the tops a black tip before a healthy green. He resolved to return to his foster parent’s home for the last time in what would be a long time, or maybe never. His guardians hugged him as he entered the small home. They told him things that he had already covered with the guard about the journey, which was a mild annoyance, but they were worried, so he dealt with it. He gave his two parents one last hug before they went to bed, leaving Vincent alone for a moment. He’d wake before the both of them and be gone from the home like a phantom, almost like he was never there.

-Amber Falls-

Vincent arrived to the gathering late. He had left his home and wandered about the town one more time, speaking to no one. When he arrived to the determined gathering site Vincent stared at William for a moment before walking past him with his deep orange robe flowing behind him. He wore it open as he always did with the belt hanging down around the waist. He glanced around at the others but in the end stood alone.

“Morning,” he said allowed to those around him. Vincent looked around the group and wondered if anyone would recognize him without his small sized guard uniform. For a moment he wondered how dear Will would do in the city with all of the people moving about here and there, but right now it didn’t matter. Vincent had grown accustomed to moving from place to place when he was younger, but it had been a long time since he had moved anywhere, and he had all of his possessions and was ready to leave at the drop of a hat.

With unusual enthusiasm and an even more unusual grin plastered upon his face, Malkizid sat casually on the grass under a small tree with enough plumage to give a respite from the rising sun whilest he unpacked and repacked his rather large leather backpack that had been a gift from his Parents. They had used this same bag on their journey as young adults, reinforcing the seems and repadding it made the pack sturdy and tough all at once. Various things were tucked neatly into various pockets or hung on straps, wrapped in cloth and put at the bottom of the pack, vials were lined up in rows of 6 at the front pouch where the top of the bag slid overtop. Each Vial contained a series of spices or herbs. His parents wouldn't enjoy the knowledge that he'd replaced one of the spices vials with his own mixture... A toxic mixture. Always better to be prepared, right?

Firmly attaching the flap to the front of the bag, Malkizid rolled the clanking pots and pans together and hung them gently on the side before tieing them off with a stretchy cord that was set for that task. Placing the finished pack beside him with confidence that he had everything important, he waited for the rest of his "Companions" to make an appearance. The thought of traveling with a large group took away his smile almost as quickly as it had come.

Emeline took a bite of an apple, her bright green eyes looked around for some of her friends. She looked down at her new sundial watch that Alexander had given her, the metal device reflected the sunlight playfully. The girl moved her arm around in a swaying motion to watch the reflection dance around the ground. Emeline smiled at the sight of parents hugging their children goodbye, several of them crying. It tugged at her heartstrings to see them reluctant to let them go.

The carpenter wondered where her friends were but couldn't find Alexander or any of her close friends. She noticed Orcus and Gregory talking and decided to join in. However, someone said "morning" and she immediately returned the greeting, "good morning, um..." She was going to say his name whoever it was but she didn't recognize the boy. Emeline squinted her eyes at Vincent, trying to figure out who he was (it didn't help that she was already unfamiliar with him). "I don't think I know you, do I?" she said finally.

Alexandra skidded to a stop by the group just in time to hear the elder's speech, smiling as she looked around in the group. As the group began walking, she began looking for 2 people, the cute girl she'd met the previous night and Gregory. Upon finding Gregory, she smiled and covered his eyes. "Guess who." she giggled. Unlike the previous night, she was wearing a long sleeve, blue flannel shirt with holes in the sleeves, only a few of which had been patched up, and a pair of blue denim overalls with holes in both knees and a broken strap.

Innuendo Squad's Resident Lesbian

I the merc with a mouth only more badass.

Mother of darkness, mother of light, earth beneath us, soul in flight, songs of love and love of life, guide us to our heart.We all come from the Goddess and to her we shall return like a drop of rain flowing to the ocean.

Vincent's gaze flicked to Emeline for a moment before he said anything in response. He was trying to figure out who this girl was as much as she was trying to figure out who he was. "Vincent Whelan, I've worked with the guard for most of my time here," he said simply, not unfolding his arms as he stood in the sun. "Unless you've inspected every guard here then I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't know me. I only ran errands, had a guard duty shift every now and then, and when I wasn't I was either at home or learning my crafts."

He put an emphasis on the 's' at the end of crafts simply because he did not regard unarmed combat and wizardry falling into the same category of self defense. Maybe if there was some kind of boxing tournament or martial arts competition at the city he'd participate but for the moment he remained rather docile. Although he did find it somewhat odd that he and the girl were about the same height, now he was beginning to wonder if he really would be the shortest male in the village.

"When I wasn't doing anything for the guard or learning I remained in the library or stayed in my home, I can be rather reclusive," his eyes darted around for a moment trying to determine whether or not he had met any of the others in the group, but it didn't matter much, they would get to know him eventually.

"That explains why I don't know you Vincent, I'm Emeline," the girl took another bite of her apple before stating, "So you must know William then since you're a guard and all." While Vincent compared their height, Emeline took notice of his hair. It was long and silver, though she did have a very short haircut for a girl, his hair was rather long for a boy's. 'Man, there's so many people here with odd hair. Wish I had cool hair like them.'She kept her thoughts to herself and with a smile spoke in a casual manner, "So what do you mean by when you say you're studying your craft- err crafts I mean. You're more than just a guard apprentice?"

“I think you will be alright as soon as we start walking and the others will be with us too. I don’t think there is anything to worry about.” Lydia smiled towards Junior, nodding. Perhaps there was nothing to worry about after all, except the fact that there might be a food shortage. It was just that fact that she’d have to leave her parents and grandfather had been unnerving, but the day has come, the day she had finally take the first steps into womanhood. It was exciting indeed.

The sixteen year old clockmaker shifted the straps of her backpack uncomfortably upon her shoulders; it felt rather restrictive being in a pair of pants and shirt, only ever have worn this type of clothing a couple of times. But she knew it would be the most practical wear she could have on such a journey. Lydia glanced through the crowd wondering where Sandra and Zephrin was, but couldn’t spot them at all. She smiled amused at the thought of they might think seeing her in clothes that was unlike her upbringing, Zephrin is sure to have a heart attack and Sandra would be cheering for her.

Lydia's gaze shifted to the ranger girl Aldrnari, nodding to herself she took Junior’s hand into her own. “Come on then Junior.” She led Junior forward to the direction of Aldrnari and William, knowing that the ranger girl would be one of the most knowledgeable on the track to get to Crenshaw.

Waking up sluggishly Alexander pulled himself from the bed "I couldn't get any real rest". This was a fact, the anxiety from not knowing what these new days alone would be like. His father stood there at his door lumbering above him like a tall tree "So you're finally awake" he could feel a bit of impatience in his father's words."more like finally decided to stop laying in my bed face first" Alexander got up and took up his sack of tools and clothes ,and slung them onto his shoulder almost ready to go as he headed to his fathers room, and there , above the headboard ,hung above the wall was the hammer ,which he picked up. His father had assured him he wouldn't be missing his sons departure, and they left for the meeting spot post haste, before Alex left to join the group Alexander's father placed his hand on his shoulder and slowly began to speak to his son..."look... there are many things I could say, good luck, so long, but instead of these things I can only say I'm sorry, I'm sorry for keeping you in the workshop instead of letting you out to be with your friends, I'm sorry I couldn't spend more time with you son, but now I want you to go out and not have to worry about me, when you get back I want to meet a fine young man with a life of his own.

Before_leaving

Alexander had spent a few minutes standing up, looking for Emeline, he was a bit disheartened to find that she was already engaged in conversation with a person that had hair almost exactly like his yet a bit darker, Alex didn't want to appear rude and interupt their conversation, he waved to Emeline for a brief moment as a sort of " I'll see you soon" wave, he looked around to find someone who wasn't already in some kind of group a boy he didn't know, sitting in the grass with an unusually happy grin, Alex hovered around a bit before approaching the boy...."Umm, hi I was still looking around and it seemed that just about everyone is in a small group of two, just sorta didn't wanna look like a weirdo or a loner,"He scratched his head a bit,"umm, you don't happen to mind me talking to you do you?" he said with a sort of goofy smile.

"Well, Emeline," he said taking a step closer before bringing up his hand to about their chest level. A gout of flame enveloped his gloved hand and he began to wreathe the fire through his fingers, "I am a wizard in training, in addition to training hand to hand combat." Vincent let the fire on his hands die out leaving his glove blackened with a fresh layer of soot. "I'm going to be training the other elements as soon as I can get a spell book with the right knowledge with them. I'll go for anything I can get my hands on... with the exception of black magic of course." The last part of the sentence with a slight twinge of discord. The thought of learning the darker forms of magic made his stomach curl, was it the fact that they were inherently evil or the fact that he'd be an outcast if he did?

Vincent looked back at William for a moment and let out a small sigh. He was worried about the other guard that was coming with them. The big city was going to be hard for him considering the crowds of people that would greet them... unless of course there was some kind of event going on that drew everyone to certain part of the city.

A shadow fell across his freshly packed bag and further still, until finally there stood another traveler about to embark upon the roads ahead. Super... He thought sarcastically but feigned a smile anyways, no sense being rude this early into the whole thing. Waving lightly to the boy to come closer he said, "No no, it's fine. I was simply making sure all of my equipment was secure and not at risk of being damaged during our trip." Patting the sack a little on the front, Malkizid gave an honest smile about his work.

Arching an eybrow, Mal opened one of the front pouches where he kept a few dried packs of food and tossed one such bag over to the other boy. "It's dried up deer meat from last night, Made it myself while you animals were off enjoying the festivities."

Orcus stepped back but looked on as Alexander suddenly popped up behind Gregory. He decided to leave the bread in Gregory's hand for now and decide how to respond. A simple "K'hem" should suffice, but then again, maybe he should let this little game end first and let Gregory introduce his...well, she must be his friend. In the meantime, he touched his scarf and pulled it up, and then pulled his hood then, in an effort to become more comfortable by hiding himself a little. He noticed a flame out of the corner of his eye but when seeing it was Vincent, he relaxed a little more. A little. From what Orcus could gather, Vincent was a little too...ambitious, perhaps. Orcus didn't know what his goal was, but whatever was driving Vincent, Orcus hoped wouldn't push him down a bad path. Plus, Fire made Orcus a little uncomfortable so, yeah.

=-"I'm sophisticated, charming, suave, and debonair, Professor. But I have never claimed to be civilized."

"O-Oh, okay," Junior said in response rather meekly as Lydia took his hand and lead him towards Aldrnari and William, following behind her obediently.

This was it; they were taking the first steps of their adventure. Soon, they'd be walking out of the village, and then...then they'd be traversing the wilderness up ahead, just outside of town. He gulped a little; last night was an adventure all on its own for Junior, having to step outside of his own home and attend a social gathering with the other apprentices. That was such a large and scary step, at the time, anyway. But now...looking back on last night, it really was such a tiny step, compared to the giant leap he'd be making this very morning.

The more he thought about it, the more his stomach ached with nervousness.

As Emeline talked with Vincent, her attention was caught by Alexander waving to her. She smiled and waved back, returning the same gesture of 'see you soon'. Realizing Vincent had just said something to her she focused back on him and noticed his hand suddenly caught fire. "Whoa!" Emeline exclaimed, her eyes grew wide as she stared at the flame. It wasn't as if she had never seen magic before, most of the apprentices were capable of some form of magic (herself included) but she had never seen anyone use spells like that. The wizard kind.

"Hand-to-hand and a wizard in training on top of guard duties?" she gave Vincent a look of both disbelief and sympathy. "Man, you must have no time for anything else." Her eyes drifted back to his hand, the glove now blackened from the flame being put out. She was impressed by the dedication Vincent appeared to put into his studies, he seemed determined about something. "At least with you around we won't have to worry about not having fires at night," Emeline joked lamely before taking another bite of her apple. She noticed Vincent sighed as he looked at William. "Something wrong?" Emeline craned her neck to see what he was looking at.